Circles Are My Favorite Shape
by Midnight Alexis Thorn
Summary: When Kakashi notices odd, uncharacteristic things that Naruto has been doing, he investigates, though admittedly not very worried for his student. He learns, however, that perhaps he should be. Rest of the summary is in the beginning of the story. Rated T because of my paranoia and one curse word and half joking reference of...something. Pairing, if any, will be chosen later.
1. Chapter 1

Circles Are My Favorite Shape

Summary: When Kakashi notices odd, uncharacteristic things that Naruto has been doing, he investigates, though admittedly not very worried for his student. He learns, however, that perhaps he should be. Naruto has had an off week and a half, considering that he's been followed by someone he thinks to be a figment of his imagination all the time that can't just accept he really, really, really is 100% happy all of the time. (He always said that he hated people who lied to themselves, he must really hate himself now, though.)

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, Sasuke would be beaten to death in the most humiliating way, I'd slap Sakura for every time she was mean to Naruto, and I'd attempt to hurt Kakashi and burn his books before he killed me for doing so because he probably hurt Naruto's feeling a lot, though unintentionally...Also, Kabuto would not have become so ugly as of recently...There would also be a lot of yaoi...Hmm...I must get rich and buy Naruto now! KESESESESESESESE! It will become awesome, like me, though not nearly as much as I...(Hetalia reference!)

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Chapter 1

Kakashi wasn't one to get into another person's business, not even when it was a friend of his. If something was wrong with them, he would wait to see if they would confide in him or talk about it or just plain get over it. If they asked for it, he would give some surprisingly helpful advise, otherwise, however, he wouldn't comment or inquire about it, nor would he follow them wherever they went to find out what was wrong with them. Not like he was with a certain blond container of the Kyuubi.

He supposed it was because it was his student. After all, if something was wrong with one teammate, it could mess up their whole teammate system (read: their nonexistent teamwork system.) It certainly wasn't because he actually liked one of his cute little students (not in that way, get your mind's out of the gutter, yaoi fan girls and perverts alike.) Nope, the kid was annoying, not very smart, and-and-and...Okay, so he could only think of two bad traits to keep himself away from his sensei's son that used to bring him so much emotional pain (and still does, though not as much.) Big deal.

Anyway, he had noticed Naruto acting a bit odd the past week or two. Little things, admittedly, like how he would sometimes suddenly go quite and allow the others to converse (Mostly one-sided ones between Sakura and Sasuke, but still) without even attempting to include himself in the conversation. It wasn't very often, so his other two students overlooked it. The only reason he didn't disregard it was because he was trained to see these things, being ex-ANBU and all.

He was also slowly distancing himself from his teammates (slowly, slowly, oh so very slowly.) One day, he could be especially hyper and happy, but then the next day he wasn't as hyper and happy and smiley and grinning his stupid, sunny, wonderful, little grin that everyone that personally knew him loved. Most days this past week, his grins seemed more...strained. Sure, his eyes would sparkle cutely, but anyone could fake eye-smile. (Hell, he perfected that art in a couple of days when he was younger.)

Upon noticing those things, he wasn't too worried. Sometimes people had an off day, but when that off day turned into a week, and even more than that, he suspected that something was up. So, here he was, following his students to wherever the hell he was going. At first, Naruto seemed to just wander around aimlessly after Kakashi had dismissed them. Now, though, he seemed to be steering clear of anywhere that might have more than a couple of people around. That was understandable, of course, who wanted to be glared at and scorned all the time for something that was way out of their reach?

He was somewhat surprised to feel a bit of anger rise at the thought that perhaps a villager had upset Naruto enough to cause him to act oddly this past week. He filed that theory in the back of his mind for now, also considering that Naruto had dealt with it just fine these past years. (Or maybe he hadn't dealt with it just fine as everyone seemed to assume. Maybe, he was hurt and needed someone to- no. What did Kakashi care? Besides, the Hokage would have noticed that he was suffering, and surely would have told Kakashi, considering how much he seemed to love to meddle in the two's lives, especially when he had put Kakashi specifically as his sensei, giving a small smirk to Kakashi while condemning him. Okay, that last part might have been his own illusion of how it happened.)

Kakashi watched as Naruto took leisurely strides towards a forest close to their training ground. He continued to watch as the leisure strides turned into slightly defeated steps when they were a good five minutes through the forest. The defeated steps turned into angry marches pretty quickly, however. Kakashi raised an eyebrow in inquiry and slight confusion. What was that about?

"If you don't leave me alone and stop following me, I'll call an exorcist or something" Naruto snarled irritably, glaring to his side. Kakashi's visible eye widened for a moment before he realized that Naruto wasn't looking at him, but toward his right side. Also, what was with the exorcist comment?

Naruto's Third Person POV

Naruto was decidedly irritated. This past week, three days, eleven hours, fifteen minutes, and whatever seconds (he wasn't counting down that much, that would be going overboard) were an absolute hell on earth (more so than usual, of course.) The villagers were getting especially mean because it was the last week of September and the Kyuubi's Festival and his birthday were coming up. Not only was there that, but he was anxious about his sensei. Was it just him, or was Kakashi-sensei...watching him more? Like he was waiting for him to do something of interest. Was he boring or did Kakashi want him to do s- Jeez, he sounded like Sakura and Ino when they were freaking out over Sasuke. The hell? He had to be careful now so that they didn't find out.

SHE told him that there was nobody else in the world who did something like that, so he better not let anyone know that he did it, or else he would get locked up in the loony bin. Why not, though? It made him feel safe, disclosed from the world. Like no one could harm him. He didn't know how to deal with those people who wanted to harm him.

To top off his bad week and a half, SHE had been following him around everywhere. Seriously, didn't she have a life?! Er, well, that's worded wrong considering...Well, anyway, she'd been following him around as soon as she found out that he could see her. She was nosy as hell and had been annoying him with her questions about him and his personal life and feelings and the-

He scowled as he felt something- or rather, someone- pull on his chakra. Not just anyone could take his chakra, absorb it, and not get hurt considering that his chakra was toxic as it mixed with the Kyuubi's. "Hey, Whiskers-dearest, what's up with you? You seem particularly pissy today" she commented nonchalantly as she appeared beside him. ...And the nicknames were pure torture. Seriously, Whiskers-dearest? The hell kind of nickname was that?! He decided to resume ignoring her. "Hey, quit ignoring me. Come on, talk to me. With no one able to communicate with you for a century, it gets really boring. Do me a solemn here" she whined, only for it to be in vain as he continued to ignore her.

"Besides, I can be like a therapist for your poor, apathetic, sad soul" she carried on, choosing to ignore the way his eye twitched. "Go on, I promise not to be mean about your troubles. I think that you're suffering from short-term depression, though it is recurring. And how does that make you feel? Don't look at me like that, that's how therapist normally ask their depressed patients, I think, anyway. It's not like I stalk therapy session in hopes of finding out what condition I had" she muttered, suddenly looking thoughtful. 'No.' Naruto thought sarcastically and with more than a little snarkiness as his steps became slightly defeated. 'You only stalk me.'

"Hey, kitten, what're you thinking about? Hopefully, not about slicing your wrist. Even if you do try to ignore me, you're an interesting person considering that you don't let others know your true feelings. Plus, if you were to kill yourself, I'd have no one to talk to and that would really suck and it'd get way too boring for me" she hummed, putting her arms behind her head and closing her eyes, just following him as he began marching angrily along.

"What's gotten you so pissy? You're such a ninny, sometimes" she huffed. "Hey, in all seriousness, are you okay? I heard some of the things that pink banshee and emo duck-butt were saying to you. That was pretty harsh. What a bunch of wankers you have as teammates, along with your sensei, too. He really doesn't say anything about it? That's messed up. Whiskers-dearest, you should totally beat the shiznit out of them. After your therapy sessions, of course. You really should take some therapy sessions" she added the last two things as an after thought.

He silently snorted, his cynical side coming out. 'And who the hell would treat the demon?' Instead of saying this, he just settled for snarling "If you don't leave me alone and stop following me, I'll call an exorcist or something." He glared daggers towards her as she blinked, turning her head to peer down at him. (Damn it, why couldn't he make those two inches to be her height.)

"I won't leave you alone. I don't just stick around you for me, you know. I do it for you, too. You need a constant person in your life that will ask how your day went and how you're feeling. You also need a person that won't instantly believe that, after years of carrying a harsh burden, you're fine. When I...I just wish I had someone like that for me..." Her happy-go-lucky, somewhat sarcastic attitude, left for a moment, leaving Naruto with a bitter taste in his mouth as he almost reached his destination, replaced with an aura of melancholy before coming back just as quickly.

"Besides, a priest couldn't get rid of me if they tried!" She grinned. Her voice suddenly went deep, "The power of Christ compels you!", "Does it, does it really?" She questioned her deeper voice with her normal one. "The power of Christ compels you!" "It's not that compelling" she dead-panned before grinning again. If he weren't so stressed, he would probably laugh a bit. "I'm funny, aren't I?" She asked cheekily, before the grin dissipated as he reached his destination.

Their destination was a large "bald" spot on the forest floor, with minimal vegetation here and there, but most of it was full of dirt. He gingerly sat down in the middle of the "bald" spot, where it seemed to have a circle wide enough for him to sit down and have two feet to stretch out his limbs on each side. His expression grew vacant, as if he was there, yet not there at the same time. As if you are in that one class where you tend to zone in and out at random intervals or how you stay in the shower twenty minutes just contemplating your life's simplicities and complexities.

And thus began the questions. "You know the rules by now, don't you?" "Pass" he muttered as she seemed vaguely disappointed, watching him draw a single line in front of him with his kunai. They both knew he knew the rules, they were simple, really. If he didn't want to answer a question, he could pass, however, he had to answer at least two or three of the questions. He would draw a line in the dirt with a chart of his passes and the questions he answered. "What's your name?" She asked, smiling as she tried to get him to answer. She knew his name, however, and deep down, Naruto knew she knew. "Pass" he marked off another. Two to zip.

"Why won't you tell me your name?" She questioned, almost sadly. "You won't like me anymore if I tell you who I am, you'll hate me like everyone else" he sighed as he marked it down. Two to one. "Why won't I like you?" Because you'll think I'm a demon, like everyone else. "Pass." "Don't you trust me?" Yes, and that scares me. "Pass." "When's your birthday?" October 10th. "Pass." "How old are you?" Sixteen "Pass." Six to one. "What's your favorite food?" Does candy count, or should I say my other, main comfort food, ramen? "Pass." "What about your favorite color?" Black, it is simple, yet elegant. Orange is my second favorite color. "Pass." And so it continued, and it continued twenty more times. "I've asked you twenty-nine questions, you only answered one, you have to answer one more. Okay?" "Pass."

"What's your favorite shape?" The silence was loud, for a long moment. He seemed to be contemplating whether or not to tell her. "...Circles Are My Favorite Shape." "Why?" She asked, urging him to continue. "Pass." "Okay. There will be no more questions today" she muttered as she stood from where she sat in front of him and began walking towards him. "Don't" his voice trembled slightly, so slightly that you had to strain to tell. She ignored him and continued until she stood right in front of the drawn outline of the circle. "Don't" his voice was full of anguish, yet she didn't falter as she brushed her foot against the line and began walking around, slowly erasing the line.

"Stop!" He shouted striking out at her with the kunai, only for it to go through her. "You forget that I can't be touched by another being" she smiled sadly, continuing on as he glared at her. "Why do you do this?" He hissed, practically seething as he curled into himself even more. "I was perfectly fine without you here. Go away! Why won't you leave? You're a figment of my imagination, aren't you? So why can't I make you leave?" He murmured the last part sadly, more to himself than her. "Well, if I am a figment of your imagination, how am I erasing this line? Something that is tangible, unlike I. So either you're hallucinating, or I am-or was- a tangible, legitimate person. Which is it?" She questioned, cocking her head to the side.

"Are you implying that you're a ghost?" Naruto asked, suddenly deathly calm. "I remember having a life before this, so maybe I am. But I don't understand how I can pull on your chakra to make myself tangible. As far as I remember, ghost can't do that" she shrugged, looking a bit distressed before her form flickered in and out. "I have to go now, but I'll see you later. It's about six o'clock and you got out of training and missions at four o'clock. Plus, it's daylight savings time so you should try to get some sleep. Goodnight, Whiskers-dearest" she smirked, knowing he despised the nickname before disappearing.

He glared where she left, not knowing where she went and ignoring the sinking feeling that came with not knowing. Why did he care? She was a nuisance, she continuously bothered him. He was perfectly fine without her. In fact, he enjoyed (perhaps that is too strong of a word) life before her! When he could be alone and stay in his safe circle for hours on end! When no one could harm him! 'Lair, they still do. You just feel better thinking this' a part of his mind hissed at him. He never did know if that was Kyuubi or if it was his actual conscience itself.

He shakily stood up, glared once more where she had disappeared, and began walking towards his apartment.

Kakashi's Third Person POV

Naruto was silent for a long while after he said that one comment that got Kakashi's mind running. Why would he say something like that when there was clearly no one next to him? Kakashi watched, with furrowed brows, as Naruto gingerly sat down in the middle of a "bald" spot in the forest, where it seemed to have a circle wide enough for him to sit down and have two feet to stretch out his limbs on each side. Kakashi continued watching as Naruto's expression grew vacant, there was no light in his eyes, nor an expression in his face. He could have been mistaken for a dead person in a sitting position if it were not for his chest rising up and down with each breath.

Kakashi's eyebrows furrowed deeper as Naruto, seemingly out of the blue, said "pass" as he marked down a single line with a kunai. Given Naruto's actions, he was a bit concerned to see it in Naruto's grasp. Tensing up in case he needed to get to Naruto quickly if Naruto tried to hurt himself. Naruto said "pass" once again, marking another line, leaving Kakashi in even more of a confused state. Who was he talking to? Kakashi's visible eye widened slightly at the thought that perhaps Naruto was talking to his "tenant."

Kakashi's heart felt as if it might burst with the next thing Naruto said, feeling as if he were guilty for it. "You won't like me anymore if I tell you who I am, you'll hate me like everyone else" Naruto sighed, a defeated sound that made Kakashi feel more guilt than he, at first, thought he should. Kakashi's ears strained slightly to listen as Naruto said, after a two second interval, "pass" twenty-seven more times in a row. Just as Kakashi began thinking that perhaps Naruto would give no more away to...whomever Naruto was speaking to, Naruto paused, interrupting the two second interval, as he took on a thoughtful look. "...Circles Are My Favorite Shape." "Pass" he murmured two seconds after he said that.

"Don't" came Naruto's slightly shaky voice, so much so that he had to strain to hear. "Don't" he repeated after two seconds, only a tad bit stronger than the last time. Full of so much agony and anguish that Kakashi, once again, felt little prickles at his heart. Don't what?

"Stop!" Naruto shouted, so suddenly that if he were a new chunin, he would have jumped a foot in the air, as Naruto struck out towards his left with the kunai in his hand. What was Naruto seeing? What was he striking out at?

"Why do you do this?" He hissed, practically seething as he curled into himself even more. "I was perfectly fine without you here. Go away! Why won't you leave? You're a figment of my imagination, aren't you? So why can't I make you leave?" He murmured the last part sadly.  
Kakashi felt a cold feeling in the pit of his stomach. Naruto was sixteen years old, he shouldn't have an imaginary friend. Was Naruto really so lonely that his mind was conjuring up imaginary people? At least he acknowledged it, Kakashi supposed. Naruto's expression shut down about five seconds after he said this.

"Are you implying that you're a ghost?" Naruto asked, suddenly deathly calm. Ghost? So much for him acknowledging this. There were no such things as "Ghost." Merely chakra left over from the dead that evaporated after a certain amount of time.

He glared once again in front of him before it fell, leaving him looking distressed. Kakashi watched in ever growing concern as as Naruto shakily stood up, glared once more in front of him, then began walking back towards his apartment. Kakashi watched him leave, mulling everything over. Should he tell the Hokage? But what would happen to Naruto then? He would get locked in a room- or jail cell if half of the council got their way- where he couldn't leave until he was checked by a Yamanaka and deemed fit enough mentally to leave, which Kakashi doubted would happen, seeing that being locked up would probably drive Naruto more crazy.

So, Kakashi concluded to keep an eye on him, watch from afar, then slowly get closer to Naruto and gain his trust. Then Kakashi would try and help him get rid of his "ghost."

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Author note: Thanks for reading, you guys. This is my first Naruto fanfic and hope I will do well. I got the idea from Crona from Soul Eater, by the way.

Note: Either Sasuke did not leave the village or came back of his own accord, you guys can decide. Or maybe I'll just make the duck-butt comment refer to Sai. He does say some pretty mean, though unintentionally so, things to Naruto.

Also, what do you guys want the pairing to be? Just because you vote for one thing, don't really expect for that pairing to happen because I may not know how to write it with the way the story will go. No offense, of course. Yes, I will allow yaoi because I myself am a yaoi fan girl. Haha. No fem! Or supposed to be dead Characters though. No incest either. It gives me the heebigeebies because I think of my siblings and I shudder. Sorry.

Choices:

Kakashi,

Hinata,

Gaara,

Sasuke(maybe, depends on what I said two paragraphs up),

And maybe anyone else you choose.

Parings that are a no-no:

Choji,

Sakura,

any other Jonin sensei,

TenTen,

Rock Lee,

Iruka(maybe...),

and any of the sennin.

Please review and give me some feedback. I accept constructive criticism, but please be nice about it. Thanks! Review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, guys. Sorry it took so long, I got grounded for a week on Sunday because of prank texting...yeah, my parents are pretty lenient, thus I am back on the internet...YAY!**

**Enjoy and review Please!**

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Chapter 2

Naruto dodged in and out of shadows as he continued his trek home. He felt...odd, he supposed would be the right word. As if he were being watched. He put the ANBU that checked on him for a day once a month into account before remembering that they had already checked on him a couple of days ago. He frowned a bit before forcing a small, yet cheerful smile on his face, just in case. If they caught him looking depressed, which he was most certainly not, it would go around and people would suspect false things because everyone knew that he was..._happy_.

Next Day

Naruto grinned cheerfully _('FAKER. LIAR. FAKER' it hissed) _as he waved enthusiastically towards Sakura and Sasuke. As usual, Kakashi was not there yet. It WAS only eight in the morning so Kakashi most likely wouldn't arrive until ten o'clock, seeing as Naruto was an hour late. "Good morning, Sakura-chan, Sai!" his grin widened _('LIAR!')_ as he stopped beside Sakura. "Shut up, idiot! You shouldn't be so damn cheerful this early!" She glared daggers towards him before blinking slightly as she realized that she had automatically snapped at him, and for something so trivial, too. She remained silent, however, before "humphing" and turning around to look down at the water under the bridge.

'So it's second nature to her now, huh? And her pride won't even allow her to apologize. Who would apologize to the demon, though? At least she didn't hit me this time, I suppose. Does this make me a masochist, thinking like this and making myself upset by these thoughts?' he mused before pushing away his cynical thoughts. Happy people didn't think cynical thoughts. Neither did stupid people.

"Besides, you're late, too, moron" she had an ugly scowl on her normally pretty face. He just grinned wider than before at her comment, seeming to take it in stride. Before she hit him upside the head, that is. 'Spoke too soon, as per usual.' "That was mean, Sakura-chan. Why can't you be nicer to me more often?" He whined with a pout, rubbing the "sore" spot tenderly, making it seem as if he were just asking on a whim and knew he wouldn't be answered when in reality, he really did want to know. "Shut up, Naruto. I'm not in the mood for your big mouth today" she hissed as Naruto's pout deepened and Sai blinked.

This was not in the books about friendship and relationships in general that he had read. In fact, this was marked under that one book that revolved exclusively about how most "bullies" acted. Perhaps being a "bully" was a good thing, then. Naruto and Sakura's friendship seemed in good enough shape, despite the occasional punch or kick Sakura gave him. Perhaps this was just how some peoples' friendships were. If so, he should copy how Sakura was treating Naruto.

"Yes, friend without genitalia, it is much too early for your incompetent shouting" Sai agreed with Sakura as Naruto glared daggers at Sai in response. "Bastard, look who's talking!" Naruto shouted indignantly before Sakura gave him an icy glare that promised much pain. He grinned sheepishly towards her in response to the glare. "You say this, yet you back down so easily to Ugly Forehead, therefore you have no genitals" Sai gave his infamous bland smile. Naruto's glare kept in place, even as he felt his chakra being pulled on and absorbed into another "body."

"For your information, Naruto does have genitals. And I'm quite sure they're functional and as-aes-what's that word again? Oh yeah! And aesthetically pleasing" she grinned at her joke and at how his eye twitched. "Besides, it isn't his fault he couldn't get to sleep and had a pansy attack in the morning and broke his alarm" she snickered as Naruto's eye twitched once again. His "pansy attack" wasn't really a pansy attack. He was just startled and extremely annoyed, thus he threw his alarm across the room. He had a spare for moments like this, anyway.

"Shut up, the both of you!" Sakura shrieked angrily, raising a warning fist as they both obeyed her, for the most part, anyway. 'She probably had a fight with her parents or Ino last night' he thought. "Sorry, Sakura-chan" he apologized sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, ignoring HER as she mimicked them. Sakura glared again in response as Naruto sat down, legs spread out in front of him, head resting against the lower rails of the bridge.

"Oh, I'm an annoying pink haired banshee who likes to bully Naruto and everyone around. Look at me, woe is me, I had a fight with my parents this morning. Boo-hoo-hoo. And I'm an emo duck-butt that doesn't know how to interact with people so I copy the attitude of the one closest to me. Also, my name's Whiskers-Dearest and I'll just put up with this because I'm a ninny. Seriously, I'd knock the girl and dude out if I were you" she huffed, eyes closed, keeping light, cloudy, violet eyes from view. She was obviously blind in her previous life. (When had he started thinking of her as a ghost or as a dead person? But if she was a ghost, why was she able to stick around so long? Normally, ghosts' excess chakra burned itself out on the second day of death.)

'That's not fair. She's not really...bullying me, I guess. And it isn't Sai's fault that he doesn't know how to interact so he just chooses to follow Sakura's example when interacting with me. That's ROOT's fault' he defended his teammates in his mind, though he knew that at the very least, it was Sakura's fault for taking her frustration and stress out on him.

She suddenly interrupted his thoughts and the quiet that had settled over them all (or, really, just he and she.) "Hey, kitten, are you okay? You're being awfully quiet...Whiskers-Dearest, do you know Morse code?" She asked, seemingly out of the blue. He popped a cerulean eye opened, startled at the sudden and random question. He looked at the other two out of the corner of his eye, before shaking his head once, then frowning as if he hadn't meant to answer her.

"Good, neither do I" she beamed at him, leaving him to stare at her blankly, with both eyes this time. 'If you didn't know Morse code yourself, then why did you ask me' he seethed internally, though he just settled for ignoring her externally, though his eye did twitch. "Woah, I've already caused the scary eye twitch three times within ten minutes, must be a new record" she mused to herself, scratching a high cheekbone with a short, yet sharp fingernail, taking delight in the fourth eye twitch that followed shortly after.

He once again looked at the other two from the corner of his eye, then glared daggers towards her for no more than three seconds before Sakura changed position. About ten minutes later, they heard a 'poof.' By then, Naruto was way past wanting to strangle the girl, though none of it showed on his face.

The three students stood up quickly whilst two of them glared daggers at the new arrival before blinking. "You're...here earlier than usual. Why's that?" Sakura questioned in a confused manor before stammering, "Not that it's a bad thing, of course. You should come earlier more often." Kakashi eye-smiled, "I encountered a fox kit that I wanted to keep an eye on because I thought something might be wrong with him, so I woke up early to check on him, but then he left, so here I am" he said in his normal aloof manner, still giving that eye-smile.

Naruto frowned for a moment, _'The hell? A fox kit, seriously?'_ "Well, when you see that fox kit again, thank him for me" Sakura huffed, obviously just deciding to go along with it since Kakashi was earlier than usual. "Ooh, by fox kit could he possibly mean...oh, but he wouldn't! Or would he? Oh, forbidden love! Perhaps, he isn't as bad as I originally thought." SHE cackled, looking absolutely ecstatic. That was another thing about her, she was a fangirl over certain things. Certain things meaning boys being together, INTIMATELY. What did a fox kit have to do with anything and why was she fangirling? She normally only fan girled when her fangirl senses told her that Kotetsu and Izumo were near.

Naruto blinked, risking a glance at her, only to find her mumbling incoherently, looking starry-eyed. "Na-" Kakashi was cut off by Naruto instantly, Naruto still not wanting her to know his name, despite the fact that he knew she meant well. "Yeah, I'm paying attention" he said quickly, looking back over at them. Kakashi blinked, then his eye narrowed ever so slightly, catching on that Naruto's "ghost" was here and he didn't want...it_(?)_ to know his name for the _(sad, depressing, melancholy)_ reason that Naruto had stated the day before.

"Maa, what were you looking at?" He questioned lazily, not wanting to make Naruto lock up his barriers because he sounded too interested. He quickly realized that it was to no avail, however. "Nothing, I just thought I saw something, but I guess I didn't" he shrugged, ignoring the melodramatic, though almost believable cry of "I'm nothing, now? Simply a no one in your book?! Wah! That hurts my feelings so!" "So, what are we going to do today?" He inquired with a sunny grin, instantly putting on a happy look, hoping to fool them. He did, as always. _(Or so he assumed, because he did not realize that one silver haired Jonin was no longer ignorant to it.)_

"We're going to train with Team Eight and Team Nine, just to see how far you guys have come" Kakashi eye-smiled again, seeming to not notice that the grin that Naruto wore was forced on and did not come naturally, meaning only to make them leave it alone. "Why will Team Ten not be there, as well?" Sai asked, with his usual bland smile sketched onto his face. "Maa, they're on a mission outside of the village at the moment, but when they come back, we'll see how we do against them as well" Kakashi answered.

"I'll meet you guys at training ground eleven, see you in a while" Kakashi waved before shunshining to wherever he was going. Naruto grinned and jumped up, stretched his arms, then turned to the other two as they began walking off without him, conversing idly, despite Sakura's mood at the moment. "Ouch, harsh that they'd just leave you without a word. You don't need them, anyway. Don't walk with them; Walk with me, I'm way more awesome than them, anyway. Besides, if you walk with them, you can't talk with me" she paused suddenly, grin disappearing as she took on a contemplating look.

"Unless, you don't care whether or not they think you're insane for talking with someone they can't see" she added, coming up to walk beside him as he ran up to catch up to them opting to walk next to Sai as he would be the least likely to hit him while he was distracted by the girl. He wordlessly flicked her off, making sure to keep his middle finger hidden from the sight of the other two just in case they turned towards him.

"Ouch, harsh. Unless you meant it the other way, in which case, I must inform you that it would be highly impossible to commit necrophilia with me considering that I am pretty much untouchable to you" she said with the most serious face she could muster at the moment, only for it to be in vain when he made a disgusted look and she burst out laughing at it.

"Hahahaha, you should have seen your face" she gasped through laughter even as he glared ice cold daggers at her. She blinked, "Death, I haven't seen you or felt the impending doom feeling that you bring in quite a while!" She beamed as she looked up, only to see Naruto glaring at her. "Oh, it's you, not Death" she pouted. "At least Death walks and talks with me" her pout deepened before she grinned widely. "Just kidding, I don't remember dying at all, so I don't remember seeing Death. I wonder if he's real, or if it's just the Devil and God as the Christians, Catholics, Jews, Protestants, and other similar faiths believe" she hummed, once again contemplative.

_'Make up your damn mind, are you a ghost or not?'_ He questioned in mind, internally scowling, however, externally he was grinning widely with his arms behind his head and cerulean eyes closed. "Hey, where do you guys think Kakashi-sensei went?" Naruto asked his teammates. "Where else? To read his stupid Icha Icha, of course" Sakura huffed, still not liking or quite comfortable with the fact that her sensei read porn, or as he liked to call it, "Romance with a pinch of spice on the side." Naruto excepted this for the moment, though he knew that Kakashi wouldn't care whether he read porn in front of them or anyone else, so had no reason to read alone.

Kakashi's Third Person POV

That was it. As soon as Naruto had given that fake grin to throw them off, Kakashi had decided immediately to check out Naruto's apartment. After all, a person's home said a lot about them.

He doubted the front door was locked due to instances in Naruto's childhood, but tried it anyway. Only to find that he was correct in it being locked. So, he then walked around the wall to the small window on the side of the apartment. It was locked as well. He sighed as he realized that he would have to break into his house in another, less inconspicuous way. He doubted that Naruto would appreciate that if he ever found out, so he decided to put his great ex-ANBU stealth to work. Naruto would never know that anyone was there, and everything would be okay. _(Or, as okay as it is at the moment.)_

He quickly walked back over to the front door and made quick work of picking the lock. Senbon came in handy at times like this. He slowly opened the door, only for the chain and latch to stop him. "Dammit" he muttered. He sighed to himself. Good thing his arms were so thin and long. He quickly unlatched the latch by twisting his arm in an odd way _(that his arm did not appreciate, by the way.)_

"Alright" he muttered to himself as he got in, sweeping his eyes across the place. He raised an eyebrow, it was different from how it was a month or two ago. It was clean and rather plain now. There was a loan plant on the windowsill, but that was all. He walked into the little kitchen first, but found no personal touches whatsoever. He frowned, it was excessively tidy. He then walked towards the bathroom. Once again, no personal touches, not even shampoo, soap, or conditioner on the sill of the shadow. He opened the cabinet door under the sink and found all of these things, however. He walked into the washing room, with a washer and dryer for clothing, but found nothing worthwhile as there was nothing else in there other than cleaning detergent.

He then walked into Naruto's bedroom and found a couple things at last, which caused him to sigh. _(In relief, perhaps?)_ There was an orange garbage can by the door, which held a smashed clock inside. He blinked and looked slightly above the garbage can, finding a slight dent in the wall. Ah, so Naruto had most likely thrown it against the wall and it had landed in the garbage can. But why would he do that? Still, other than another clock on the nightstand, the plant, and the Team 7 picture on the nightstand, there was nothing in the whole house that signalized a personal touch. Plus, the excessive tidiness. So, Naruto most likely didn't put personal touches because he wanted it to be _[unnecessarily]_ tidy.

There was only one condition _(other than OCD, which considering how it used to be, he doubted it)_ that could be the cause of this and that was regression. Which, if his sharingan eye remembered, was;

When confronted by stressful events, people sometimes abandon coping strategies and revert to patterns of behavior used earlier in development. Anna Freud called this defense mechanism regression, suggesting that people act out behaviors from the stage of psychosexual development in which they are fixated. For example, an individual fixated at an earlier developmental stage might cry or sulk upon hearing unpleasant news.

Behaviors associated with regression can vary greatly depending upon which stage the person is fixated at:

An individual fixated at the oral stage might begin eating or smoking excessively, or might become very verbally aggressive.  
A fixation at the anal stage might result in excessive tidiness or messiness.

...On second thought, it was OCD. Naruto showed no sexual drive so it had to be OCD. Or maybe it wasn't a disorder at all. Maybe he just didn't have anything of worth to decor his apartment with and had decided that it was time to keep his apartment clean. Whichever it was, he resolved to find out later when he was feeling less awkward thanks to "regression." He next went through the drawers, but only found clothing, such as the orange-black jumpsuit, boxers, and tight fitting undershirts ranging in colors from black to red.

He shook the pillow to see if there was anything hidden inside, but found nothing so he put the pillow back where it was. Kakashi then pat down the bed, but found nothing there other than the sheet and comforter. Next, Kakashi laid on the ground, looked under the bed, and pat the ground lightly. Jackpot. He had found a hollow spot. He made quick use of a kunai and gently pried it open.

Inside laid a single black box.

* * *

Cliffhanger! MWUHAHAHA. KESESESESESESESE! But I gave you an eye color for "her." Violet eyes with a cloudy surface! She was (is?) blind. Happy? An awkward Kakashi is a fun Kakashi! Lol, I had to put in regression after I looked up some psychological disorders because I'm interested in taking Psychology next year for high school freshman year! Yay!

Please review and and make my life worthwhile! Thanks, darlings. Review...review...review!


	3. Chapter 3

Wow! 10 reviews, 20 followers, and 8 favorites! I love you guys! It's the 22nd of September at this moment in the book, by the way. Without further ado;

* * *

Chapter 3

Strangle? Ha! As if he could be so merciful at this point. He was at the point of drowning her slowly while he cackled at her slow death and his lost sanity. _(Could you lose something you never had? He jokes, he must have had some form of sanity when he was born.)_

"Kitten, walk away or something so we can talk! Seriously, I was born and love to speak! You know, that reminds me of a song. It goes a little something like this; I don't mean to hurt you, but I love to speak. It feels like we're pulling teeth, so bittersweet..." She sang, and at first it was kind of catchy and good, despite how irritated he was, but then it just kept going on...and on...and on...and-oh, she stopped! Praise whoever is up there laughing at his life.

"...What...are those...things...?" She asked slowly, with none too little confusion as she stared at Rock Lee and Gai-sensei doing push ups energetically. "Are those...caterpillars...? Holy crap! Those aren't caterpillars, those are eyebrows! Kitten, I've found two new victims to make fun of!" She exclaimed cheerfully _(and it was about damn time she stopped making fun of his teammates.)_ "I still dislike your teammates, though. They still suck in my book" she added as if she knew what he was thinking.

"Oi! Hey, guys! What's up?" Naruto grinned widely at seeing them, ignoring the girl who mocked him. "Hello, Naruto-kun, Sakura-chan, and Sai-kun" Lee shouted back, even more energetically than Naruto _(after all, it was much more sincere and happy, despite the fact that Naruto liked Team 8 and Team 9 fairly well)_, leaping up from their push ups after they counted to three hundred.

After the two teams and their sensei's realized that Team 7 had arrived, they greeted each with different levels of enthusiasm. "Hello, N-Naruto-kun" Hinata flushed a pretty pink color as Naruto shot her a grin. "Good morning, Hinata-chan" he beamed a smile as her face slowly grew to more of a red color than a pink.

"Too bad for you, Hinata. He's gay! Gay or european~" she began singing as he continued to ignore her. "Sup, whiskers" Kiba smirked, and the girl scowled. "What the hell, man? That's a total stupid rip-off from my nickname for Whiskers-dearest. Jerk!" She huffed as she paused her song, despite knowing that it was only a huge coincidence. "...Depending on the time of day, the French go either way~" she continued singing. 'I'm not gay, dammit!' He snapped in his mind.

"Nothing much, Dog-breath, what about you?" Naruto shot back instantly as Kiba glared daggers at him for the name. "Nothing, just being bored to death" Kiba huffed as Naruto grinned, choosing to ignore the cries of, "The mighty flames of youth burn brightly in you all!" "I agree, Gai-sensei!" "Lee!" "Gai-sensei!"

"Normally, I'd be squealing and all for this, but the sunset/beach background is kind of freaking me out..." She muttered as Naruto mentally wondered what she meant, but internally shrugged. "It's a viewer/outside person thing" the authoress answered the boy before a resounding crash rang out.

"What the hell was that?" Naruto asked in confusion, not recognizing the voice. 'Dear Kami, I haven't gotten the attention of another ghost, have I?' Naruto questioned himself in fear of it being true. "No, you haven't, but that's a good idea" the authoress hummed. 'Please don't!' Naruto thought frantically. "Seriously, what the hell?" Naruto questioned aloud.

"T-that was the s-sound of the fourth w-wall being b-broken, N-Naruto-k-kun, but lets ignore that, i-if it's okay w-with you, o-of c-course" Hinata stammered frantically, hoping she hadn't somehow offended the blond. "What the hell, authoress? This is supposed to be a serious fanfic" Sakura frowned, making the authoress feel somewhat guilty. "Yes, it indeed is supposed to be quite serious, authoress" Sai gave the authoress a bland smile, making her feel even more guilty. "Oh, yeah. My bad. Um, so you guys are just going to conveniently forget this, right?" The authoress questioned as the others nodded.

"Yes, that is how it normally goes at moments when the fourth wall is broken" Neji spoke up for the first time since Team 7 had arrived. "Great, thanks guys!" The authoress said cheerfully. "No problem, fourth wall breaker!" The girl beamed as she waved to the authoress who faded out of view.

"I am confused. Why, you may ask? The answer is simple really, I must inquire if that girl with the violet, cloudy eyes was here the whole time." Shino said, changing his question into a statement in that odd way of his. "This sucks that no one could see me, I'm not Canada for Kami's sake" she huffed. "Who?" "Canada!" "Hush, Shino, we have to forget about it now" Kurenai sighed. She just hoped that the authoress would not break the fourth wall again.

"When is my eternal rival Kakashi going to arrive?" Gai-sensei asked _(shouted)_ in a booming voice, as per usual. "Soon, hopefully. I still can't tell with him" Sakura sighed, feeling annoyance build up in her, directed mostly at her sensei. "Well, do you at least know where he went?" Kurenai asked, feeling the ever growing need to sigh. Some things never change. "Nope" Naruto grinned dopily, ignoring some of the others' eye rolls. Cough, Kiba, Tenten, and Neji, cough.

"Immature brats! Honestly, it isn't that hard to tell that you're faking a stupid grin. Jeez!" She exclaimed, though he ignored her. Okay, so he was faking how stupid it was, but that didn't mean he was any less happy. Because he really wasn't any less happy than he appeared. Really.

"Hopefully, he'll decide to be a responsible Jonin and not be extremely late" Sakura huffed in annoyance. "Maa, that's mean, Sakura. I can be quite responsible when I want to be" Kakashi seemed to have a pout in his tone.

Kakashi's Third Person POV

The black box looked simple enough. There was no lock or anything, so Kakashi supposed that Naruto thought that no one would ever bother searching his home this thoroughly. He grabbed the box and sat down Indian-style. He opened it slowly, as he wouldn't want to accidentally break it. _(That would be very, very hard to explain and Naruto would (most likely) be very, very upset.)_

There was a single small, orange notebook _(go figure that it would be orange.)_ There was no writing on the cover, so he opened it up to the first page. "Calligraphy?" Kakashi blinked as he saw the writing style it was in. It didn't look like Naruto's chicken-scratch handwriting at all. He decided to read it anyway. After all, if Naruto was hiding how he really felt then he could be hiding numerous other things about himself as well.

_September 11, 2013  
Dear whatever the hell you're supposed to be (diary, perhaps? No way, that's way too girly. I'll call you Journal):_

_Today I got you, but I'm not sure if that's a good thing considering who suggested you to me. Yesterday afternoon I saw this weird girl, you know, the kind that I usually see. Except, she had tan skin, violet, cloudy eyes, and dark brown hair. It might be my imagination conjuring up friends for me or something, but I think that maybe Kyuubi has something to do with it since he/she/it snickered when I first saw the girl, or maybe it's a ghost. Ha, yeah right. Ghost? She can't be. For starters, she can touch me. Actually touch me. She can touch other things as well, but I don't know how that works. It's just way too weird, you know? Then again, I can't seem to touch her. So I'm not exactly sure if she's a ghost or not or whatever. I'm just confused, but I guess all idiots usually are, aren't they?_

Kakashi frowned, because of Kyuubi? That's what he was blaming seeing "ghost" on? Did this mean he had past imaginary "friends?" Also, he considered himself an idiot? Sure, he was a bit dense at times, but he wasn't a full-blown idiot. (Except, Kakashi wasn't sure if Naruto was even really that dense. He could be quite smart at times, so Kakashi would never know if he didn't find out for himself.)

_September 12, 2013  
Dear Journal (That's going to get really tedious, really quick, so i'm just going to write whatever I have to write instead of writing the intro.):_

_She's so confusing! Seriously, what the hell is wrong with her? Did she have some sort of mental problem or something? Gah! Why am I writing in the past tense? She's not dead or real! I hate this because I almost wish she was at least one of the two. She's really weird and she's been cackling and cooing whenever gay guys walk past or she sees some. (She coos and gives even more perverted giggles than Kakashi-sensei with his book whenever Kotetsu and Izumo walk by.) It's severely creepy and somewhat disturbing._

_She's been following me around almost everywhere and it's...it's...I don't know how I feel about it. It's just weird. I don't know what to do. I've tried to make her leave, but she won't. She just grins whenever I tell her to and says, "We both need the company, kitten, so just enjoy it. Besides, I like you, you're interesting." Yeah, whatever that's supposed to mean. I'm not interesting, I'm annoying and stupid...Why doesn't she believe me?_

_She doesn't treat me like everyone else. She asks how my day went and if she knows what happens then she asks me how I feel about it and why I put up with it. Put up with what? I'm perfectly fine and so is everything else. She also asks if I'm really, actually happy. Of course I am! If you act happy then sooner or later you'll be happy, right? Anyway, she made a game of sorts for when I go to my circle. The rules are that she asks me about thirty questions, but I have to answer two to three. If I don't want to answer, I can just say "pass." _

Kakashi's frown deepened, if you act happy then sooner or later you'll be happy? That isn't even the most minuscule bit true. _(Trust him, he learned that a long, long time ago.) _Also, the rules of the game "she" made up explains the one-sided conversation yesterday.

_September 13, 2013_

_Gah! She won't leave me alone! If I was smarter I wouldn't have acknowledged that I saw her a couple days ago...Wow, it was only a couple days ago? It feels like it's been way longer than that. Anyway, I digress a bit. I've been getting really irritated really easy these past couple days, even before I met the girl. She says that I'm "on my man period." Whatever. Anyway, this means that I've been acting a little odd around my teammates. I hope they haven't noticed anything, which they probably haven't because I'm a happy idiot who doesn't need anyone or anything to keep him happy and not feeling alone._

From this point on, the entries kept on progressing into more and more of a down tone, implicating that he really wasn't as happy as he said _(wrote?)_ he was. However, six days later, it was completely different from all the other entries.

_September 19, 2013_

_I don't want to write anything about today. I'm confused and upset is all I have to say._

Kakashi blinked, the other days were rants basically and now it seemed as if he completely shut down his walls and barriers. Earlier he had stressed that he was happy, but now he admits that he's upset? What happened that day? Kakashi closed his eyes in thought as he fought to remember what went on that day. On September 19, he seemed perfectly fine, however, the next day Naruto was acting extra odd and everything seemed so much more strained and forced _(to the professional eye, of course.)_ The day after the 19th was two days ago and was the main reason he decided to watch Naruto more closely.

He flipped the page to the next day and found it blank. Kakashi frowned again. He wasn't writing anymore. What happened three days ago? It wasn't like he could ask Naruto, "Hey, Naruto, what happened on the 19th of this month?" He sighed in dismay for a moment before deciding to figure out what to do on the run _(idle walk with his Icha Icha in hand.)_ So he quietly and skillfully put everything back where it was and made sure that nothing was out of place.

Once he was satisfied, he began his walk. However, despite the fact that he tried to concentrate and read Icha Icha, he found his mind trailing over to Naruto far too much._ (Which was kind of awkward with him reading Icha Icha at the same time...There was a gay couple in this volume...Enough said, correct?)_

'I'm going to stop reading Icha Icha Paradise now so that I don't feel like a pedophile...' Kakashi sweat dropped mentally before finding himself near the correct training ground. Thus, he shunshined just in time to hear Sakura's comment. He pouted slightly, he was responsible. He could be on time if he wanted to.

"Maa, that's mean, Sakura. I can be quite responsible when I want to be" he huffed in a pout, taking almost sadistic delight when most of them started slightly. "In fact, I can even be on time, when I want to be" he smirked before it turned into another pout at the next comment. "That is a lie, you will not try, Kakashi-sempai" Sai gave another of his infamous bland smiles as Gai shouted, "Lying is most unyouthful, my eternal rival!" However, Gai was ignored, considering that that is what smart people tend to do with people like him...Smile and nod, kids...Smile and nod...

* * *

That was so much fun! At first, the fourth wall breaking thing was meant to make fun of people who do that, but then I actually liked it and now acknowledge that it's fun. Plus, I told you her skin color and hair color! Two things that I didn't even plan to tell you until later on. You're welcome! ;) I love my "Smile and nod, kids...Smile and nod..." Don't get me wrong, I like Gai, but I like to poke fun at him more. :)

Ooh, I made a Legally Blonde reference and a Hetalia reference. I am awesome! I'm even more awesome than Prussia! (Shh, don't tell him I said that.) Tell me your favorite part or what you didn't like. In other words, REVIEW! I love you guys! Hugs and kisses!


	4. Chapter 4

September 11, 2013

Naruto rolled out of bed that morning, hating the clock as he slammed his hand on the snooze button, keeping eyes closed as their wills so pleaded. "'M n'v..r g...g t' s..ep 't t..ee 'n the m..r...g 'gain" Naruto murmured as it translated to "I'm never going to sleep at three in the morning again." "'M hungry" mumbled Naruto much more audible and comprehensible than before. He quickly and "very majestically" ("Ow! My toe! Dammit!") set to making his instant ramen. (He was too lazy to make the eggs he had gotten the other day. Plus, he couldn't cook worth crap.)

Once he finished doing what he had to do, he set on his way to torture, also known as the training grounds. 'I wonder if that girl is still gonna follow me around.'

...

"Naruto, you idiot!"

"Dickless, I do believe that big forehead is correct for once, you are an idiot"

"Sai, call me big forehead again and watch what happens!"

"Big forehe-"

BOOM!

"Ehehehehehe, s-say, Sakura-chan, did I mention that you look very beautiful toda-"

"What do you mean, 'today?!' Are you implying that I don't look beautiful everyday?"

"N-no, I just-"

BOOM!

And thus, an orange heap landed next to a black and red one.

"Mah, sorry I'm la-...Are they breathing?"

"Probably...Wait, are they?"

...

Naruto let out a sigh as he left the training ground. Thankfully, he didn't see anymore of that weird girl he had seen the day before. He didn't know why, but she was stuck in his head. What the hell was that about? Perhaps, it was because she wasn't like the others he had seen over the years, she was...different. In a good way or a bad way, he couldn't tell. She didn't have that depressed, defeated expression or aura. In fact, she seemed strong and rather determined to grab the attention of someone.

"Damn you all! You should be able to see me! I'm not Canada! And I'm not lonely either! I just want someone to talk to is all! Hey, blonde with the whiskers!" Someone shouted nearby and he turned around out of sheer habit. "Ha! I knew you could see me! Try faking not seeing me again and watch what happens, kitten" the weird girl he thought he had gotten rid of threatened. (Nothing happened the next hundred times he ignored her, as you all know.)

He quickly broke eye contact with her and pretended he was looking for someone. 'Please let there be someone I know so I can trick her' he thought frantically. He did not want an imaginary friend, seriously, that was lame and weird at sixteen years old. Plus, he was extra wary of her because Kyuubi snickered the first time they saw her. Kyuubi hardly ever talked or made a noise unless it was to make fun of or mildly bully Naruto. (Tch, the insensitive jerk of a fox. Surprisingly, it wasn't very often though.)

There. Was. No. One. Naruto breathed a sigh as he walked to the forest he usually visited. "Ha! You do see me, kid!" The girl grinned once they were out of sight and hearing distance of people and well into the forest. "Kid? You don't seem much older than me, you know" Naruto glared towards the girl who degraded him. "Eh, I'm sixteen, physically, mind you. I don't bother to count the years anymore, it's much too tedious and boring. I was born on October 9th. What about you? By the way, what's your name?" She questioned as he fell silent once again. There was no way in hell he was telling her his name, age, or birthday.

"Kid?...Fine, if you're not going to answer me, then I won't tell you my name and I'll just call you Whiskers-dearest!" She exclaimed cheerfully. "Whiskers-dearest?" He frowned, indecisive about the odd nickname. "Yep, I'm going to call you Whiskers-dearest from now on" She grinned, small canines making themselves known, giving her a sort of cute yet feral look.

"...Whatever, I guess I'll just have to call you 'the weird girl,' huh?" Naruto felt himself smirk against his will as she grinned even larger in response. "Not very original, but it'll work. Besides, being normal is overrated and just no fun at all" she pouted slightly, bottom lip jutting out ever so slightly.

"Hm, I don't know about that one. I think that maybe being normal would be a good thing. Sometimes, I wish I was completely and utterly normal" Naruto admitted before his eyes widened and he stiffened. Why the hell had he admitted that to this complete stranger and oddity? He had never even admitted that to the Old Man or Iruka!

"Is that so? Well, even if things were tough for me, I wouldn't want to be anybody else. If you're weird, there's no one else quite like you, but if you're normal, then you might act like a lot of other "normal" people. Personally though, I don't think there's such a thing as "normal." I think that...it's just an idea, it isn't an actual thing" her eyes closed in thought, and Naruto found himself awestruck with how she could turn from odd and sassy, to serious and philosophical within mere seconds, even if he didn't fully agree with her ideas.

"I guess that makes sense, but sometimes I would still rather be like everyone else" Naruto sighed before stiffening and widening his eyes again. Why was he telling her this stuff? "You know...you remind me a lot of the old me. Before I got totally awesome, awe-inspiring, and amazing, of course. The triple-A" she smirked and Naruto raised a blonde eyebrow before he sat down and began creating the circle.

She blinked at the kunai in his hand. "You aren't gonna slice your wrist or anything, are you?" She asked, only half-joking. "No" he answered shortly before becoming silent again, just sitting there, allowing his mind to become blank. Until she interrupted, that is.

"Want to play a game?" She asked, causing him to open his eyes and frown at her. "Great!" She continued, not giving him the chance to reply. "The rules are as follows;..."

...

She walked him almost all the way home that night (no matter how much he tried to get rid of her) and he was a confused and upset mess. "Hey, kid, do you have any notebooks or empty books at home?" She questioned him suddenly as he frowned. He had one small orange notebook, but he didn't really use it for anything. "Yeah, why?" He asked shortly.

"Great! I think you should keep a diary so that you can blog how your day went and vent. I used to write to vent, but now I don't really have anything to vent about other than not being seen, even if it is annoying" she pouted slightly and he paused mentally for a moment to think about it. "...I'll think about it" he humored her, though he doubted that he would actually write anything. Nothing in his life was worthwhile to write about. What would he write about?

"What would I even write about anyway?" He found himself asking. "Anything and everything, of course! You could write about a crush, your teammates, your feelings, anything that confuses or upsets you, or just your day in general. There are a multitude of things to write about. You could even write full-blown stories or short stories. The possibilities are endless, Whiskers-dearest!" She grinned happily, obviously pleased with the question and her answer.

He thought about it for a moment and paused a street or two from his apartment. "Listen, not that I don't trust you or anything, because oddly enough I sort of already do, but...if you see where I live, then you might figure out who it am, and I don't want that to happen. So...can we part ways for the night?" He asked hopefully, knowing that if she really wanted to she could just ignore him and follow him.

She blinked and paused mid-step. "...Alright, but sooner or later I'm gonna find out who you are, but when I do, I promise that I won't treat you any differently. Know that, okay? We both need the company, kitten, so just enjoy it. Besides, I like you, you're interesting. Good night. Farewell for now, Whiskers-dearest! Off to my own land of mystical creatures and rainbows and cute gay guys! Whoosh!" she waved and saluted dramatically, ruffling his hair for a moment as he gaped when she just disappeared into thin air.

He really questioned her sanity. He had tried poking her once to get her to walk like a normal freaking person when she started skipping around after she saw Kotetsu and Izumo, whilst cooing and becoming starry-eyed, but his hand had just gone through (it was a bit creepy.) She continued cooing even long after Kotetsu and Izumo were out of sight. So he concluded that no, she was not perfectly sane.

'She can touch me, but I can't touch her, and she disappears whenever she feels like it...This is a close second for weirdest thing ever, but Gai-sensei and Lee still hold the record for...being them, really. Besides, she isn't real, so it doesn't matter...but what if she's a ghost?...Nah...Good night, weird girl.'

September 19, 2013

Naruto woke up (pfft, who was he kidding? If he was perfectly honest, he hadn't really fallen asleep last night) that day and already knew that it would be a bad day. Maybe he could play hooky on training? No, because then Kakashi would probably send someone to check up on him or tell the Hokage. Damn him for being responsible for things like a student not coming to training.

"Dammit" he cursed and said a few other choice words. "What a beautiful, colorful vocabulary you have" the girl had sarcastically snickered at him one day when he was feeling particularly "pissy," as she had so kindly put it before. "I don't want to go" he groaned as he drug himself out of bed. He went into the same old, boring routine. Every day was the same thing. The same repetitive routine. Put ramen in the microwave, get dressed, eat, brush teeth, put shoes on, check that he had everything, and then leave.

Ninja weren't allowed to roof jump over people's houses and stores unless it was for a good reason. Naruto doubted that escaping insults and glares would count as a good reason for disobeying that rule, to other people, anyway. Ugh, some days he hated people and- where did that come from? Naruto almost frowned before remembering that he was out in public. Instead, he thought happy thoughts that only made his grin bigger, irritating most people around him. Those who were irritated were the ones that still didn't quite understand the concept of a scroll and a kunai.

But it was okay, they were just scared and frightened. When man was scared and felt intimidated, it tended to shun or attempt to exterminate the thing that frightened it. Except, he didn't really know how to deal with those people. The ones who had attempted to exterminate them. Sometimes, though, he felt like it was just people in general he didn't know how to deal with. They were rude, mean, and downright evil seeming sometimes. They fought, they cheat, they stole, and they killed for no reason other than to kill what they do not want around and what they do not understand.

They didn't understand him. Some people didn't understand the difference between the scroll and the kunai. Some people did understand that concept, but still hated him. Why? Because of fear. Fear dominated their lives. They bully and hate what they don't understand nor want to understand because they fear what is different. (Had be forgotten that he himself was human as well? Well, perhaps he did, because sometimes, he sure as hell didn't feel like it.) Just look at how some kids treat each other. The fat kid that gets shoved around for simply being larger than the other kids. Look at the kid with the speech problem that gets mocked all day at school by his or her peers. The girl with the birthmark that covers a little less than half of her face that gets called ugly.

The young boy with the demon sealed inside of him that got called just that. Demon. Monster. Murderer. Don't you dare tell him that sticks and stones may break his bones, but words will never hurt him. Don't you dare. Don't you dare tell him that it hurts less than a broken bone. He has had many broken bones before and it did NOT hurt more than one single name. If anything, the salvo of cruel words and withering looks hurt more than the broken bones he had received. Because broken bones can heal. Broken and scared hearts are much, much more complicated than a broken bone.

Despite the fact that he knew that they were wrong and that he knew that he wasn't Kyuubi, it still hurt. They were wrong, and he knew this, but it still hurt. They have to be wrong. You have to believe that they were wrong. He had to believe that they wrong. He wasn't Kyuubi, he wasn't a demon, nor a monster, nor a murderer. Even if they believed he was.

On that depressing note, his mood quickly plummeted. Sometimes, he got like this. A small burst of depression would hit him from a single thought, or a large one like the one above. He was used to it, though. It was always short and was only once in a while. He wasn't depressed all the time. Really, he wasn't.

He skillfully ignored the smoldering looks. He skillfully ignored the hissed words and pointed fingers. He skillfully ignored and eradicated the burning in his eyes. He skillfully ignored the painful feeling in his chest. He skillfully ignored the pain that continued to grow at each word and pointed finger and withering look. He skillfully ignored it all. It was okay. He would be okay. The pain would leave sooner or later. They would get bored soon enough and continue with what they were doing. Either that, or he would arrive at the training ground.

When the girl appeared, she didn't seem to sense his mood or the atmosphere. She didn't seem to hear the whispered words. She didn't seem to see the sneers and pointed glares. She just continued talking and he tuned in and out of the one-sided conversation until she seemed to get somewhat serious compared to what she usually was. "It's a balancing act, you know. Hopefully, you won't fall" the girl sighed, not even sparing him a glance, still walking forward and keeping her eyes closed.

"What's a balancing act?" Naruto questioned under his breath. "Life" she answered simply. "Life is a balancing act. Some people fall, I did, to be honest, but I got up. Once I got up back onto the tightrope, someone cut it, though. I hope that you don't fall and I hope that no one cuts the tightrope" she said, leaving him confused and wondering what she meant.

...

For some reason, the names he got called that day by his peers and friends hurt a lot more. Stupid. Useless. Idiot. He guessed it was because he was still a little upset from his small burst of depression earlier. Plus, he couldn't realize what the hell the girl meant by what she said so he was left frustrated and out of focus. Therefore, his teammates got frustrated as well when he didn't seem to be giving it his all. He made up some shitty excuse about going to bed way too late that he was pretty sure his sensei didn't buy.

Despite the fact that he did in fact go to bed late, it wasn't really the reason. He had gone to bed even later than that and had been perfectly fine. This time, though, he was distracted by what she meant by what she said about life.

"Naruto! Pay attention!" Sakura snapped as Kakashi paused with his mission description. "I'm paying attention, Sakura!" Naruto snapped back irritably, getting two pairs of eyes to widen and a blank look from Sai. "...Naruto, are you okay?" Sakura hesitated before asking. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, Sakura-chan. I'm just really tired, okay?" Naruto gave her his winning grin and apologetic look. "He's really not all that sorry" the girl snickered as he barely controlled the eye twitch that followed.

"It's okay. I'm sorry for yelling at you, though. I just thought that you were slacking off or zoning out" Sakura apologized as well, leaving the three men and (invisible) woman shocked. "But don't snap at me again or I'll hit you" she gave an evil looking smile that made them all shudder slightly. "Jesus Christ, can you say bipolar or what?" The girl muttered to herself. She suddenly paused and looked up warily at the sky, then around her. "Phew, he must be busy" she said before cracking up at her little joke. "Ah, I'm so funny" she grinned to herself.

"Alright" Naruto sweat dropped at both Sakura and the girl. "Mah, Naruto, are you sure that's it?" Kakashi questioned as Naruto's eyes widened slightly. "Yeah, I just went to bed too late, sorry" he laughed and waved the concern off, feeling uncomfortable. "Alright, now as I was saying, you three will be attending a class that helps you to see the tell-tale signs of a mentally sick mind. In your ninja career, you will meet people who won't be completely sane or are depressed. You need to be able to spot those people who aren't mentally well or are depressed to protect yourself and your teammates or to help that person" Kakashi said seriously, making Naruto even more uncomfortable.

"Ooh, dude, you're busted" the girl said in a rather matter of fact tone. Naruto barely resisted the almost unquenchable snort and eye roll. He was definitely not depressed. It just didn't add up, he did not have depression. Well, not long-term depression, anyway. Maybe just short-term. On second thought, not even that, really. It was only once in a while and it only lasted a day or two when he got it.

...

Naruto tuned in and out of the lesson that day. That is, until the woman teaching them said something that intrigued him. "When a person suffers depression, they may decide to self-harm. Self-harm can be anything from scratching to burning oneself. The most common self-harm people turn to is cutting. There are many reasons why a person may turn to this alternative. It may be so that they feel a bit of freedom, it may be because to them, physical pain dulls the emotional pain. And while this may be true for a while, it is not a permanent fix to the problem and feelings they are experiencing."

Naruto frowned slightly, thinking this over. Cutting yourself? That seemed...stupid. How could that possibly help you? But...if so many people do it and continue to do it...does it actually work for them? It was just bringing yourself pain...yet, if they continued to do it, then it must actually work. They don't feel the emotional pain when they hurt physically.

Naruto didn't remember much of the rest of that lesson. He only remembered tuning in and out of it. It was almost as if he was on autopilot. He grinned and he laughed and he messed up and around, but he didn't feel or hear himself do it. The rest of the day was full of subconscious actions and words. He vaguely remembered being asked how the mission went by their sensei, and vaguely remembered replying that it was interesting.

He hadn't exactly lied, now, had he? He was obviously interested in what the woman had said before since he was so distracted by it. He remembered tuning in once and hearing a whispered jab and a loud snarl directed towards him. Demon. Was he? He didn't know anymore. Hate. Did they hate him? Of course they did. Who wouldn't? Not him, that's for sure. Die...He-

He remembered walking to the forest he normally visited in a daze. The girl joined him shortly before and was watching him closely, for once being quiet, other than the fidgeting, of course.

"Are you okay?" She inquired, seeing how his eyes were cloudy and unfocused. "..." He didn't reply as he plopped down on the floor under him. He quickly, albeit somewhat shakily, drew the circle around him. He closed his eyes and thought for a moment, putting his kunai back in his pouch. "Whiskers-dearest...Kitten...Kid?" She asked hesitantly, wishing that she could use his name to get his attention.

"Listen-" she grew deadly silent as he grabbed his kunai and pulled it back out firmly. She remained silent. So did he. Not a word was uttered. And though the world continued on around them and the birds chirped and the voles squeaked, all was silent between them.

He rested the kunai against his skin. The woman hadn't told them where people usually cut. On the wrist? On the forearm? On the leg? On the thigh? On the- Where? He decided on the top side of his wrist, away from the veins. It wouldn't do for him to bleed out out here. He pressed down lightly, though not enough to break the skin.

Should he? Would it matter? He wouldn't die, so why not? Why not? Why not? Why not? Why- Granny Tsunade would be pissed. Pervy Sage would be upset or angry or ashamed to have even known him. Maybe all of the above. Iruka-sensei would be upset for a little while.

On the other hand, ninety-five percent of the villagers would be overjoyed if they found out that he self-harmed. He could make them happy. He could make himself happy. His teammates would be released of a burden if he was sent to a mental ward or prison as the majority of the council would like. Granny Tsunade, Pervy Sage, and Iruka-sensei would get over it sooner or later. He could be happy for a little while. They could be happy. He could be happy. They could be- But what would happen if-

"DAMMIT! FUCK! FUCK! AHHHHH!" Naruto let out an angry sob before he squelched it immediately. He returned the kunai to his skin, but still didn't press it the fuck down. Like he fucking should.

What the fuck was he afraid of? Why were his hands shaking? Why couldn't he just fucking do it? Why couldn't he just press a little harder? Why did he keep thinking about the consequences? Why could he not do it? Why? Why? Why? Why? Wh-

He was a coward. He wasn't brave enough. Wasn't strong enough. Was too weak. Too wimpy. Wimp. Wimp. Wimp. Coward. Coward. Coward. Weak. Weak. Weak.

Another angry sob escaped his lips without his consent. "Dammit! DAMMIT! AH! I CAN'T DO IT! I'M A COWARD, A FUCKING COWARD!" He shouted as he threw the kunai away from him, curling up into himself.

Suddenly, the girl who hadn't spoken for a good hour or two, spoke up. (Was it an hour or two, really? He sure felt like it. Maybe it was a couple of minutes. He wasn't so sure.) "You're not a coward. You're braver than I was. You almost fell, but you didn't. You're brave, you're stronger, you're...You didn't fall, not like the others, not like so many other people...not like me" she muttered, fixing sad eyes on him.

He was startled, from the short time he had known her, she was rarely serious, and was never, ever, ever sad. They remained silent after that. Naruto still didn't know what she meant by falling and being braver than her. Was she going to be like this from now on? Sad and-and- If she was, it would be his fault. All his fault. Maybe if he promised not to try it again, she wouldn't look so sad and upset...He wasn't supposed to break his promises.

He hoped that she would be back to normal soon. Preferably now. It was weird seeing her so serious and melancholy. It made him uncomfortable and left him with a sick feeling in his stomach. She would be back to normal later, right? She never could stay serious for too long, so she would be back to normal in maybe five minutes. Maybe not even that. She would be back to normal within three minutes, actually. They would both be back to normal in not even-

There was no game that day.

He didn't know how to deal with it.

* * *

I'm sorry! I'm so so so sorry! It's been like 25 days since I last updated! I'm an absolute ass and I'm sorry for that. I will try to update by every Monday. No guarantees, but I will try. I stayed up until 4:00 am last night (or rather, this morning) trying to finish this for you. And I have a funeral to go to today! Yep, a twelve o'clock, so basically I only got FIVE HOURS OF SLEEP! Gah! I'm DIEING! The things I do for you people!

Lol, not really, but, you know. PSYCH IS COMING BACK TODAY! HOORAY! My fav TV show everrrrr. Does anyone know what time and what channel? USA, right? But what time?

So, yeah, this was a flashback chapter for those of you who were curious about what happened these two days since Naruto's summary of the days were brief. The story will be back in the flow of things by next Monday. Goodbye, my lovelies! Review, my darlings! Mommy Midnight loves you lots! Mommy Midnight is talking in the third person!...I think Mommy Midnight should really get some more sleep...Mommy Midnight says Goodnight/Good morning.


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